{"id":21556,"date":"2019-05-14T03:00:38","date_gmt":"2019-05-14T10:00:38","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?p=21556"},"modified":"2019-05-13T14:56:38","modified_gmt":"2019-05-13T21:56:38","slug":"what-matters-to-readers-by-kay-keppler","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2019\/05\/14\/what-matters-to-readers-by-kay-keppler\/","title":{"rendered":"What Matters to Readers by Kay Keppler"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler.jpg\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-21557\" title=\"What Matters to Readers by Kay Keppler\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler-300x169.jpg\" alt=\"What Matters to Readers by Kay Keppler\" width=\"300\" height=\"169\" srcset=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler-300x169.jpg 300w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler-768x432.jpg 768w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler-1024x576.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler-640x360.jpg 640w, https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/What-Matters-to-Readers-by-Kay-Keppler.jpg 1920w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/><\/a>Let\u2019s\u00a0welcome\u00a0back monthly columnist, editor, and novelist,\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/?s=kay+keppler\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Kay Keppler<\/a>, as she shares with us \u201cWhat Matters to Readers.&#8221; <em>Enjoy!\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<p><strong>Writers get a lot of advice.<\/strong> They\u2019re told to write what they know or explore new worlds. To grab readers in the first paragraph or do a slow build. They pay attention to structure and pacing, voice and character arc, all to make readers pick up a story, engage with it, and read it to its conclusion. But do they?<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What Do Readers Want, Anyway?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.barbaralinnprobst.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Barbara Linn Probst<\/a> is a novelist and researcher who holds a Ph.D. in clinical social work. She recently conducted a very informal, nonscientific <a href=\"https:\/\/writerunboxed.com\/2019\/05\/04\/why-do-readers-love-some-novels-results-of-a-survey\/#more-56836\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">survey<\/a> to find out what made readers love a novel. As a novelist, she felt that she was thinking like a technician, not a reader. She believes that readers don\u2019t necessarily think along structural terms\u2014for example, they don\u2019t necessarily analyze that they love a book\u2019s pacing, therefore, they love the book.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>A Survey Reveals\u2026<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>She decided to ask readers what makes them love a novel. She conducted a simple, voluntary survey consisting of only one open-ended question: <em>What makes you love a novel?<\/em> She posted the question on eight Facebook groups for readers, emphasizing that people could write whatever they liked. She received 173 responses.<\/p>\n<p><strong>Of course, this is a small sample<\/strong>, and it can\u2019t possibly represent all readers. However, it probably does represent to some degree a section of readers who care enough about books to join an online community, think about what they read, and take the time to make their views public. Avid readers, in other words.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>\u2026Readers Like Everything<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>T<strong>he most frequently cited reasons for loving a novel were:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>The characters (24%)<br \/>\nWithin the category of \u201ccharacters\u201d:<br \/>\nWell developed, authentic\/relatable characters (11.4%)<br \/>\nEmotional connection\/caring about the characters (5%)<\/li>\n<li>A great storyline, with plenty of twists and turns (11.5%)<\/li>\n<li>The experience of immersion and emotional engagement (9%)<\/li>\n<li>A chance to learn something new\/made me think (6.3%)<\/li>\n<li>The quality of the writing, including the voice (6%)<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Other elements that respondents mentioned included good dialogue, humor, an evocative setting, and a satisfying ending.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>Readers Take Time to Decide<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Probst points out that the question <em>What makes you love a novel?<\/em> is <em>reflective<\/em>; it\u2019s what you understand about the book after you\u2019ve finished it. It doesn\u2019t reflect why a reader picked up a book in the first place. However, she anticipated that reader responses would span three points in time:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Initial encounter<\/strong>: Did the book grab my interest? Did I love it, right from the beginning?<\/li>\n<li><strong>Throughout:<\/strong> Did the book sustain my interest? Did I want to keep reading to the end?<\/li>\n<li><strong>Afterward<\/strong>: Did I think about it later? Remember it? Recommend it?<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>As writers, we\u2019re told how crucial that first impression is, but in Probst\u2019s survey, there were only 12 references to the importance of that early \u201cgrab\u201d (among 493 data points collected). Only five readers of the 173 said this had to happen on page one.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What Readers Don\u2019t Like<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>Several people volunteered information about what they disliked about novels, offering reasons they stopped reading a book. Some disliked long wordy descriptions; others disliked devices such as multiple time lines or points of view, which they found confusing and disruptive. A straightforward, emotionally compelling, and interesting story\u2014that was what they liked, not a sophisticated structure.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>The Dichotomy of Function<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>What I found interesting about this survey is that some of the findings dovetail with what we might expect, but some don\u2019t. There seems to be a significant gap between what writers work on, what agents and editors expect to see, and what readers care about.<\/p>\n<p><strong><em>Writers<\/em> care about goal, motivation, conflict, stakes<\/strong>\u2014all of that. <em>Agents<\/em> are pressed for time; they need to see a quick initial spark\u2014a flash bang\u2014in a query letter or the first pages of a manuscript or they stop reading. But 93% of readers take a lot longer to decide if they like a book\u2014often they don\u2019t decide until they reach the end.<\/p>\n<h2><strong>What Are You Writing?<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p>What does this mean for you, the writer looking to write the best book you can? This survey\u2014and any survey, really\u2014isn\u2019t definitive. It\u2019s a quick capture of a specific point in time by a few respondents.<\/p>\n<p><strong>But the responses feel true to me.<\/strong> And what I get from it is that you can\u2019t possibly incorporate all the expectations and desires of agents or editors and readers while writing the best story you can. So it\u2019s more important than ever to write the book of your heart, the book you want to write in the way the story wants to be told, the book that resonates with you, in the hope that it will resonate with readers, too. Keep the noise of publication and sales as far away as possible. When the time comes to sell your book to an agent or editor, find a way to pitch it that captures their imagination.<\/p>\n<p><strong>And then you hope that readers love it\u2014and come back for more.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<h2>ABOUT THE AUTHOR<\/h2>\n<p><a title=\"Kay Keppler\" href=\"http:\/\/www.kaykeppler.com\/\">Kay Keppler<\/a><a href=\"http:\/\/www.kaykeppler.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"http:\/\/www.kaykeppler.com\/ noopener noreferrer\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignleft wp-image-9691\" title=\"Kay Keppler, Author\" src=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/11\/Kay-Keppler_31.jpg\" alt=\"Kay Keppler, Author; used in Make Setting Meaningful by Kay Keppler\" width=\"150\" height=\"216\" \/><\/a>\u00a0is an author\u00a0<em><a title=\"Zero Gravity Outcasts\" href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/1rqW2wW\">Zero Gravity Outcasts<\/a><\/em>, <em><a title=\"Betting on Hope\" href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/1l42nc4\">Betting on Hope<\/a><\/em>,\u00a0<em><a title=\"Gargoyle: Three Enchanting Romance Novellas\" href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/1pEPjjq\">Gargoyle: Three Enchanting Romance Novellas<\/a><\/em>, and editor of fiction and nonfiction \u2013<em><a title=\"Angel\u2019s Kiss\" href=\"http:\/\/amzn.to\/1nylmgE\">Angel\u2019s Kiss<\/a><\/em>\u00a0and\u00a0<em>Outsource It<\/em>!<\/p>\n<p>She lives in northern California. Contact her here at Writer\u2019s Fun Zone in the comments below, or at\u00a0<a title=\"kaykeppler@yahoo.com\" href=\"mailto:kaykeppler@yahoo.com\">kaykeppler@yahoo.com<\/a>\u00a0to ask questions, suggest topics, or if you prefer, complain.<\/p>\n<p>***<\/p>\n<p><strong>More popular articles by Kay Keppler on Writer&#8217;s Fun Zone:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2019\/02\/12\/developing-your-voice-by-kay-keppler\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Developing Your Voice<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2018\/12\/18\/lift-your-story-with-character-archetypes-by-kay-keppler\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Lift Your Story with Character Archetypes<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2018\/10\/16\/revealing-backstory-through-nonverbal-communication-by-kay-keppler\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Revealing Backstory through Nonverbal Communication<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2018\/08\/14\/make-em-laugh-by-kay-keppler\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">Make \u2019Em Laugh<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Writers get a lot of advice. They\u2019re told to write what they know or explore new worlds. To grab readers in the first paragraph or do a slow build.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":12,"featured_media":21557,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_exactmetrics_skip_tracking":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_active":false,"_exactmetrics_sitenote_note":"","_exactmetrics_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[3921,1340,352,3923],"class_list":["post-21556","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-writing-tips","tag-barbara-linn-probst","tag-kay-keppler","tag-readers","tag-what-readers-want"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.4 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Matters to Readers by Kay Keppler &#183; Writer&#039;s Fun Zone<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Writers get a lot of advice. They\u2019re told to write what they know or explore new worlds. To grab readers in the first paragraph or do a slow build.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/writersfunzone.com\/blog\/2019\/05\/14\/what-matters-to-readers-by-kay-keppler\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Matters to Readers by Kay Keppler &#183; Writer&#039;s Fun Zone\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Writers get a lot of advice. They\u2019re told to write what they know or explore new worlds. 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